Full Circle
by The Cat's Paw
Summary: A peaceful excursion with her shishou turns into quite the adventure as Sakura is thrust 14 years back in time. Can she get home, or is she going to be stuck there, doomed to relive history? M rated KakaSaku time travel fic.
1. Chapter 1

**Once upon a time, so very long ago, I _loved_ KakaSaku more than any other pairing. But then I learned to love others more, and KakaSaku ended up falling to the wayside. Then, I didn't care about Naruto at all, until one day I suddenly wanted to write it again. But alas, tragedy struck, and for three weeks over Christmas, I lost access to my laptop. (needed a new battery and a replacement for a corrupted drive)**

 **But during that time, I used my phone to read fics, and ended up rediscovering my old love for KakaSaku. I wrote fics on paper, waiting for the day I'd be reunited with my laptop. (corny much?) Once I was, the monumental task of transcribing all my work over to the laptop took _ages_ , and was even interrupted when I finally 'discovered' the anime, Bleach. (effing _awesome_ anime!)**

 **Okay, all melodrama aside, this is my first serious KakaSaku in _ages_ , and is inspired heavily by three awesome time travel fics that I read. Unbroken, In Case Of Blue Scroll, and When You Were Young. The latter of which _always_ put the Killers song in my head ;) Not sure how long the fic will be, we'll see how it goes.**

 **Okay, so enjoy, and remember that if the Naruto-verse belonged to me, there's no way that SasuSaku would have been canon. (I only like it in AU and non-mass)**

 _ **Full Circle**_

 **Chapter One**

"Wow..."

"I know, right? These ruins actually date back to before the Shodaime's era."

"Shizune! Sakura! Would you two please _shut up_?!"

Both women shut their traps as the woman before them, Legendary Sannin and former Godaime Hokage, glared at them before returning to paying her respects to the monument before them. The large stone monument had been built to commemorate a large and deadly battle, one of many in history that had been Senju versus Uchiha. This battle had apparently been one of a few without a true victor. The stalemate had only ended with an order from the Shogunate, and the memorial had been erected over fifty years later to remember the dead.

By then, the Leaf village had been formed, with a tentative alliance formed between the Senju, Uchiha, and other clans. When Tsunade had said she wanted to come here, Sakura had bee leery. Why visit a crumbling old monument? But then the significance had been explained to her, and she understood. Now, she stared around in awe, conjuring up awesome battles long past in her head.

Tsunade seemed to be done, as she went and sat on a nearby bench. Shizune and Sakura followed, the latter asking, "How often have you come here, shishou?"

"This is the third time," the busty blonde said as she pulled out a saké bottle and uncorked it, deftly keeping it out of the suddenly snatching grasp of her older apprentice. "Watch it, brat! We're going to have a toast to the honoured dead!"

Shizune blushed sheepishly even as she reached into her bag for three small cups. Tsunade poured them each a measure, then the three women bowed their heads briefly. "Heiwa to kyūsoku," she said, and Shizune and Sakura followed suit before they all drank.

They all sat there, silent for quite some time, then Shizune said, "Remember the last time we were here, Tsunade-sama?"

The Sannin sighed. "Fourteen years ago…" she mused.

"That was about the time that we were… ahem… _hiding_ from Iwata-san, wasn't it?" Shizune remarked, and Tsunade scoffed.

Suddenly, all three women were on their feet and alert, as a moment later several shinobi had them surrounded. "Tsunade-sama," a voice drawled, the owner of that voice coming into view when they turned to face him.

"Who the hell are you?" the former Hokage demanded.

"I'm someone that's not very happy with you," he told her.

"That doesn't answer my question," Tsunade said.

The man tutted. "It hurts me right here," he said, thumping his chest, "that you don't remember Ikari Futoshi. How forgettable am I? Seriously?"

Tsunade shook her head. "Sorry, not ringing any bells."

"We met at my base of operations," Futoshi said, getting more than a little irate at her. "You waltzed in and beat up my men and I."

"Nope… Nothing, sorry," Tsunade said, eyes carefully flicking around to assess their situation. "You sure you've got the right person?"

"Who on earth would mix up the Legendary Sannin and Godaime Hokage of Konoha with anyone else?"

Tsunade just shrugged.

"Fine, we'll just get on to doing what we came here to do," Futoshi snapped, and suddenly the other ninja, who were likely nukenin, mercenaries, or even a combination of both, attacked.

Sakura and Shizune went on the defensive, though they also both quickly forced their opponents to switch as the two kunoichi went on the attack. Sakura was snapping bones and crushing limbs even as Shizune pulled out senbon and kunai covered in poison. The battle was furious as the two women moved quickly, and soon their enemies were defeated. But when they looked over at Tsunade, they were horrified to see that she'd been caught in some kind of chakra trap, one that may have even been planted in anticipation of their arrival.

"Shishou!" Sakura cried, pushing herself forward to her master, only to find herself blocked off by an invisible barrier.

"Tsunade-sama!" Shizune cried. "What can we do?"

"There's only one thing," Sakura said determinedly, and started making hand signs.

"Shizune! Stop her!"

But it was too late. Sakura's kawarimi no jutsu was complete, and she switched places with Tsunade, who stumbled and glared at Futoshi. The light of the jutsu coalesced around Sakura as it was completed. Futoshi looked furious.

"You idiot!" he screamed at Sakura. "This jutsu isn't meant for you! Aargh! My plans!"

Sakura was frozen in place, unable to move or speak as she felt chakra being drained from her. "Ikari!" Tsunade boomed. "What have you done?"

Futoshi glared at Sakura, then sighed in resignation. "Fine," he sneered at her. "Enjoy your life in the past, you stupid little brat!"

A bright light covered the area, and Tsunade and Shizune were forced to shield their eyes as Sakura disappeared from their sight.

OoOoO

"Incredible..." Shizune breathed.

She and her mentor, the Sannin Tsunade, were visiting an old ruin. It was a monument to an old battle between the Senju and Uchiha, commemorating the honour of the lives lost in that bloody conflict.

"This is only the second time I've been here," Tsunade said. "The first was with my parents and grandparents when I was six."

She moved over to the memorial, bowing her head in respect and offering a prayer to Kami. Shizune watched on respectfully until Tsunade stood and stepped back. The two of them had come here to 'hide' from debt collectors, most notably one Iwata Akihiro. The man was notorious for being able to collect a debt from _anyone_ , but Tsunade was determined that she would be the first to escape. They'd left Iwata back in a small village in Lightning country, and were now in the south east of Fire country.

The two women were about to leave, their respects paid, but they both immediately stiffened, just before part of the ground lit up with a golden light. It was almost blinding in its intensity, but when it cleared, a figure stood there. Well, for a moment, anyway. A pink haired woman sporting a Konoha hitai-ate collapsed to the ground in front of them. The medic in Tsunade had her rushing forward to check her over, hands lit green with chakra before she even reached the girl.

The woman's head lolled back as Tsunade moved her into an easier position, and Shizune gasped. "Lady Tsunade! Her forehead!"

There, in the middle of the woman's forehead, sat a diamond juin, identical to Tsunade's.

Tsunade hesitated only briefly, before saying, "We can worry about that later."

Pushing her chakra into the young woman, she noted that there were only a few minor scrapes, which were actually starting to heal on their own. A flick of her eyes to the young lady's forehead as she _knew_ why that was. It seemed the only real issue was her chakra exhaustion, there was so little of it available outside her juin. Cutting off her chakra, Tsunade stopped, knowing the only thing to do now was to just wait until she woke on her own.

"She'll be fine," Tsunade said, pulling the young woman into her arms as she stood. "Come on, we'll take her into Niseko and get a room at that inn we saw on the way through."

Shizune picked up the strange girl's fallen pack, then followed her mentor away from there, a worried and wary expression on her face.

OoOoO

Sakura's journey into consciousness was slow and sluggish. Muffled noises gradually got louder and louder, until she could hear hushed voices.

"…your technique!"

"I don't know. But that light…"

"It… it felt like pure chakra, milady. What kind of jutsu could it be?"

"We can ask her when she wakes up. Until then…"

"Until then, what?"

"Hush Shizune, look. She's coming to."

Sakura felt a hand on her forehead as she struggled to open her eyes. The image of Tsunade and Shizune faded into existence as she struggled to speak, finally making her lips move after some concentration.

"Shi…shou…?" Sakura slurred.

The hand on her forehead started to glow with chakra. "Hey there," Tsunade said as she ran her diagnostic. "Don't try to move too quickly, you did deplete all of your chakra after all."

"'M sorry," Sakura mumbled. "Promise… not… to do it… again, shishou."

She sighed and closed her eyes, missing the way Tsunade's eyes widened when she realised that Sakura was calling _her_ shishou. "Do you remember your name?" the blonde asked.

"Haruno… Sa...Sakura," was her answer. "Shishou… What happened after…?"

"After?" Tsunade prompted after a moment of silence.

"After the nukenin and that guy… that you c-couldn't remember?"

Tsunade and Shizune were both beyond shocked now, not that Sakura could tell. She was a bit too busy feeling woozy, yet secure in her shishou's hands.

"We'll… We'll discuss it later, Sakura," Tsunade said. "Sleep now."

"'Kay," Sakura mumbled, and allowed herself to drift off.

The two women watching over her were speechless.

"Do… do you know her?" Shizune eventually managed to ask.

Shaking her head, Tsunade said, "Never met her. But I'm sure there's some kind of logical explanation. Or maybe nonsensical, the world's _full_ of those sort."

"Do you think she's a spy sent by Iwata-san?" Shizune asked. "Maybe some kind of imposter?"

"Who would she be posing as?" Tsunade asked. "The only things I can think of that would explain it in some way, are false memories, time travel, or maybe she's…"

"A stalker!" Shizune gasped. "That would make _sooo_ much sense! I bet that thing on her forehead is a fake!"

"It's the real deal," Tsunade interrupted. "I checked when I was examining her. _Both_ times."

Shizune's eyes widened. "But it's _impossible_ for anyone but you to master that technique!" she said. " _I_ haven't, and you've been my teacher for _years_!"

"Well, maybe I've been her teacher for years, too," Tsunade suggested, then snapped, "Don't give me that look, Shizune!"

"B-but you're implying you believe she's genuine!" the younger woman gasped. "That you believe the time travel theory!"

"I've been on this earth far longer than you have, Shizune," the Sannin said. "I've seen things to make your skin crawl… Time travel's not too far out there for me, especially since my old team mate, Orochimaru, once looked into it and found it to be a viable thing!"

"Really? …He did?"

"We can ask her how she got here when she wakes up," Tsunade said with an air of finality on the subject. "Until then… Do me a favour and go down to the reception, get some food up here. It's going to be dark soon, and we missed lunch because our little 'adventure'."

"Yes, Tsunade-sama," Shizune reluctantly agreed, and left, shooting a worried glance at the girl on the bed as she stepped out of the room.

Tsunade grabbed a chair to sit on and watch over their new guest, flicking distractedly through a magazine as she pondered her presence here.

OoOoO

When Sakura woke again, it was dark. She felt much more rested and relaxed, could feel that her chakra was almost completely back up to normal. It was enough to function, at least. She stretched, opening her eyes to see her shishou and Shizune sleeping in other beds in the room. Sitting up, Sakura looked around for her pack, but didn't find it. She contemplated getting up to look for it, but then a memory assaulted her with a gasp.

' _Enjoy your life in the past...'_

What on earth had that meant?

Suddenly Tsunade bolted upright, eyes darting over to her and widening once she saw she was awake. She stood and made her way over, slightly on the defensive, which confused Sakura. Why would her shishou need to be defensive around her?

"How are you feeling?" Tsunade asked.

"Fine, now," Sakura told her. "Shishou, why are you…?"

"Why do you call me that?" she was interrupted. "Shishou, that is."

"Because that's what you are," Sakura said, frowning in confusion. "My teacher."

Tsunade stepped closer then. "I have a question that may seem strange," she told her, "but it's important that you answer. What year do you think it is?"

Sakura's eyes widened. _No…_ She licked her lips nervously and answered.

"I knew it!" Tsunade yelled suddenly, waking Shizune.

"Who… whazzit, where?"

Tsunade lost her defensive stance and grabbed a chair before sitting right next to the bed Sakura was on, and telling her what year _she_ thought it was. "So," she asked. "How far did you come back, then?"

"F-fourteen years," Sakura said, feeling dread pool in her stomach. How on earth was she going to get home?

"You need to tell me _everything_ about how you got here," Tsunade told her, leaning forward. "Who was involved, any jutsu you remember, what you were doing at the time…"

"We were at the memorial," Sakura said. "You, me, Shizune. Then this guy turned up with a bunch of men, nukenin and mercenaries, by the look of it. He apparently had a score to settle with you, though you couldn't remember him."

"So _I_ was his target?" Tsunade asked, and Sakura nodded. "Who was he?"

"Ikari Futoshi."

Sakura saw that the name still didn't ring any bells with her shishou, and she sighed. "Maybe you haven't met him yet?" she suggested, then continued, "Shizune and I were busy taking care of the nukenin and mercenaries, and when we'd dealt with them, he'd somehow caught you in a jutsu. I wonder, though, if he hadn't known we were going to be there, and laid the trap beforehand."

"Wait," Shizune interrupted. "If Tsunade-sama was the one caught in the jutsu, then how are _you_ here?"

Sighing, Sakura said, "When I realised I couldn't get through the jutsu to pull you out, I used kawarimi no jutsu to swap us. He was angry, but apparently he couldn't undo the jutsu, so I was sent back… here."

Tsunade and Shizune sat there absorbing that, then the elder one sighed. "This really is a lot to take in," she said. "Even though I'd figured it was something like this. Still, thank you, Sakura, for keeping him from possibly erasing me from the time-line."

"It was nothing, shishou," Sakura said softly.

"Right!" Tsunade exclaimed, standing. "We should go to Konoha, see if they have any information on this guy. We're close by anyway. And I'll see if I can talk to my old team mate about the whole time travel thing."

"O-old team mate?" Sakura asked, a bit of apprehension about just _which_ team mate she meant.

"His name's Orochimaru," Tsunade said. "Surely I've told you about him?"

"I've… met him a few times," Sakura evaded. "Wait! Are you sure it's a good idea to bring others into this?"

"It'll be fine," Tsunade reassured her. "Orochimaru's likely your best bet at getting back home, anyway."

Sakura felt depressed at that thought.

"We should all get some sleep," Tsunade said. "We can head off to Konoha in the morning."

She went back to her bed and settled back in, Shizune following suit with a frown on her face as she shot a glance at Sakura. The pinkette sighed and flopped back down on her bed, her mind racing over everything that had happened. It took well over an hour before she could get to sleep, and when she did finally manage it, she was restless, her dreams plagued with images of a sneering Futoshi calling her a stupid brat.

 **So how was it? I think that I did a pretty good job, considering this was done on paper. Though I did touch it up here and there once it was on my laptop. The next chapter's mostly done, it needs a bit extra added, then some extension.**

 **Review please! :)**

 _Kawarimi no Jutsu: Substitution jutsu._

 _Niseko: Real Japanese town, because I can't make up a name for one, sheesh!_

 _Heiwa to kyūsoku: Peace and rest._


	2. Chapter 2

**New chapter! So, I'm not exactly sure when it is that Orochimaru is driven from the village, so we'll just go with this here, then, shall we?**

 **Disclaimer and enjoy, folks!**

 **Chapter Two**

The trip to Konoha was going to take most of the daylight hours, so they'd set out rather early in the morning. Tsunade had grumbled about the early hour, no different from her attitude most mornings in the future. Shizune had simply reminded her it was her idea to get up this early, and with one last grumble and a glare in her direction, Tsunade had stopped complaining. Outwardly, at least.

As they travelled, Tsunade and Shizune both asked Sakura questions, with the former asking the most. Tsunade even tried a couple of times to get Sakura to reveal some lottery numbers, but after a scolding from Shizune, and a blank look from Sakura, the future Godaime had chuckled sheepishly and dropped the subject. Tsunade was still quite curious about things, so she redirected her questions to a safer subject.

"So, how did you become my apprentice?" she asked.

"It happened after my first chuunin exam," Sakura said. "I hadn't passed, in fact, my team and I were incredibly lucky to make it out of the forest in time. I'd had to face a few hard truths about my status as a kunoichi, and that, coupled with… other things… Well, I went straight to you and begged you to take me on."

"So… I was in the village?"

"Uh… Yeah."

"How far did you go with the training?" Shizune asked. "There are a lot of things I've never been able to master myself. They require a level of chakra control I've never had."

"Oh, I've mastered everything that you and shishou taught me," Sakura said.

"Wait, did I teach you things too?" Shizune asked, surprised, and Sakura nodded.

"Even though Tsunade is my shishou, you helped as well when it came to poisons and such," Sakura told her. "You're also one of the few people I go to, besides shishou, about creating or altering jutsus, and any research I do."

"Oh really?" the brunette medic asked, brightening considerably. "What's our most recent project? Er… For you, that is."

"Working out a way to throw chakra scalpels," Sakura told both surprised women. "It's not perfect, there's still a lot of kinks to work out, but we've got the basics. …Do you… want to see?"

Shizune's eyes widened even further, and she smiled. "Of course!" she said, and Sakura knew that she'd won her over.

They stopped, and Sakura formed the chakra scalpel. Adjusting the chakra to the necessary point, she aimed at a nearby tree, took a deep breath, and threw it. The scalpel embedded itself in the wood, cracking it before the back of the tree was blown out. The hole left behind had Shizune speechless.

"It's messy and incomplete," Sakura said. "It uses too much chakra in this form, but it's something we're working on reducing."

"Impressive," Tsunade said. "But let's get going now, shall we?"

They chatted lightly as they travelled, pausing only briefly to have a light lunch, and a little after five in the afternoon, the gates of Konoha were before them.

"Tsunade-sama!" one of the chuunin on guard duty exclaimed when he saw her. "I… It's an honour to welcome you back to the village, my lady."

Tsunade waved a dismissive hand at that. "Whatever,"she said. "I trust Sarutobi-sensei is in the Hokage tower?"

"Actually, he should be in the tower in the forty-fourth training grounds," the other chuunin said, stepping forward to speak to them. "The end of the survival section of the chuunin exams is today. He shouldn't be too long hopefully, as long as there aren't any preliminaries this time."

"We'll find somewhere to pass the time then," Tsunade decided. "Shizune, Sakura, you hungry? We could get an early dinner, if you'd like."

"Oh, okay."

"Sure."

Once they were gone, the two chuunin nodded at one another, the first who'd spoken leaping away to find someone of jounin or ANBU rank to find the Hokage to inform him that his old student was back in town.

OoOoO

They found a really nice tonkatsu place on the edge of the market district, which Sakura had actually never seen before. As far as the future was concerned, there was actually a soba-ya here, so maybe it had gone out of business? The food was delicious, and the saké Tsunade ordered was a pleasant finish to the meal. Shizune didn't even complain about the saké, though she ordered a green tea for herself, with Sakura following suit.

"So," the future Godaime said (though Sakura had _no_ intention of ever telling her that, she didn't want to scare her off) once they'd finished. "What we're going to do, hopefully, once Sarutobi-sensei approves, is see if Konoha has any record of this… What was his name again, Sakura?"

"Ikari Futoshi," Sakura said with a sigh.

"Right, him," Tsunade agreed. "Once we have that info, we'll track him down, though admittedly, I'm not the best tracker."

"Me neither," Shizune admitted.

"Still," Tsunade went on. "We'll find him, and make him help us get Sakura home."

"Um..." Shizune started nervously.

"What is it?" Tsunade asked, eyes narrowed. "Well? Speak up, Shizune!"

"What do we do if he hasn't acquired or created the jutsu yet?" Shizune asked worriedly. "There is a fourteen year difference here, after all."

"We won't know until we find him," Sakura said.

"That's right," Tsunade agreed. "And even if he hasn't got it yet, there's still my old team mate, Orochimaru."

Sakura remained silent at the reminder, not wanting to say anything, not even sure if he'd been caught out and made a run for it yet. She was pretty sure it was around about this time, a vague recollection of something she'd once read popping into her head. And if he had, Tsunade obviously didn't yet know about it, and Sakura wasn't entirely sure she wanted to be the one to tell her.

"Let's wait until we see the Hokage," she said. "We can make our plans then."

It wasn't long before an ANBU found them, informing them that the Sandaime was back in his office, waiting to see them. The three of them walked at a sedate pace through the streets, neither Tsunade or Shizune seemingly in a hurry to get to the Hokage tower. Sakura wasn't either, though for different reasons, she was sure. Once they did arrive, though, Tsunade was all business.

"Sarutobi-sama," she said formally. "I request the removal of _every_ ANBU in the room, and privacy seals put in place."

The Third looked surprised by this request, reasonably so. "That's quite a request, Tsunade," he said, eyes flickering to Shizune, then Sakura.

"When I tell you why, I know you'll understand and agree with me, sensei," Tsunade told him.

Sarutobi Hiruzen contemplated them for a moment, staring at each of them in turn before he nodded and gave the order. "Now, what is it that you have to tell me?" he asked.

They told their story, and twenty minutes later, the only sound in the room was the ticking of a clock. Sakura was nervous, to be sure, and Shizune looked quite faint at the tension in the room. Tsunade simply stood there, arms crossed as she stared at her old sensei, waiting for his response. Finally he sighed, reclining back in his seat.

"How sure are you that this girl speaks the truth?" he asked.

"Because of things she knows," Tsunade said. "I asked her questions on the way here that no imposter could answer."

Sakura realised then that all of Tsunade's chatting on the way to the village hadn't been as random as one might have thought, and she stared at her shishou, surprised at this strangely never before seen side of her.

"Add to that fact," Tsunade continued, "the manner in which she appeared. The chakra from the jutsu was immense, more than any I've felt before. And then there's the juin on her forehead. That cannot be faked, you _know_ that, I checked it myself while she was unconscious. Twice."

Sakura resisted the urge to reach up and touch her juin, not wanting to bring attention to herself just yet, though it didn't matter, because the Hokage turned his wise old gaze to her.

"Alright then, tell me something, girl," he said. "Something that you think might convince me you are who you say you are."

Sakura thought a moment. "Well, I'm not privy to the deepest, darkest secrets of the village," she said. "How about if I say that I know that Uzumaki Naruto is the host to the kyuubi, and that his father was the Yondaime, Namikaze Minato? Also, that his mother Kushina was the jinchuuriki before him, and originally from Uzushiogakure, before it was destroyed."

"And how would it be that you know all of this?" the Sandaime asked, eyeing her thoughtfully.

"Naruto told me," Sakura said. "He learned it from imprints of his parents, both of whom sealed parts of their chakra in him as safeguards against the kyuubi's release."

"So you're well acquainted with him, then?"

"He was my gennin team mate and is one of my best friends."

The Third smiled softly. "I'm glad he has such a good friend," he said, then sighed, and turned back to Tsunade. "What was your purpose in bringing her here?"

"Sakura knows the name of the man who sent her back," Tsunade said. "We need to find him, find out if he already knows the jutsu he used yet or not. Failing that, maybe Orochimaru might have… What? What is it?"

Sarutobi sighed, and Sakura just _knew_ then what he was about to say, and braced herself. "A few months ago," the old man said, "we discovered that Orochimaru had been performing… questionable experiments. I confronted him, he fled, and he is now listed as an S-ranked missing nin."

Tsunade was in shock, then she turned to Sakura and demanded, "Did you know about this?"

"I wasn't sure when it happened," the pinkette admitted. "I didn't want to say anything, just in case..."

Tsunade swore. "That BAKA!" she yelled. "How could he do something like this? How did it happen? Why didn't you send someone to _tell me_?!"

That last bit was aimed at the Third. "I did send word," he told her. "I sent out a squad, but they have been unable to find you. I'll be recalling them back to the village now, since you've returned on your own."

"So what now?" Shizune asked.

Tsunade sighed, struggling to get her temper under control. "Ikari Furoshi," she grumbled a few minutes later, still positively _seething_ in her rage. "He's our best lead."

"I can give you access to the archives," the Hokage said. "But you know the protocol, Tsunade. I'll have to assign ANBU to watch you as well."

"Why ANBU?" Shizune asked.

"Probably because of me," Sakura said.

"You are correct, Sakura," the Hokage confirmed. "At this point in time, you are not a registered shinobi of the Leaf, though I will not make you surrender your hitai-ate, or anything. The only Haruno Sakura registered in the village would be a five year old girl, the daughter of a civilian and a retired ninja. You _technically_ cannot even go into the archives, but I'll have special permission written up for you. Just don't forget that you cannot go in without an ANBU with you at all times."

"That's going to be a _terribly_ boring job for someone," Tsunade remarked. "What poor sod are you going to stick with that?"

OoOoO

"Home sweet home!"

Tsunade pushed open the door to the house, letting out a cloud of dust that had Sakura and Shizune coughing.

"Okay, so we'll be airing out the place," Tsunade said, seemingly unaffected by the dust they'd stirred up. "At least the outside has been kept up by gennin teams… Alright, you two, let's get this place fit to sleep in for the night!"

They went around opening up windows, then Shizune insisted they sweep through the house. "But if we sweep before we dust, it'll just need sweeping again," Sakura argued.

"Alright, you dust, then I'll sweep up behind you then," Shizune conceded.

"Both of you shut it," Tsunade ordered. "Your domesticity is grating on my nerves."

Despite her words, Tsunade joined in the cleaning, and soon, they had three bedrooms, the kitchen, a bathroom, and the living room functional. "I'm so exhausted," Shizune groaned, flopping down on the lounge. "It's been _ages_ since I cleaned that much!"

"You're the one who insisted on cleaning so thoroughly," Tsunade told her from her spot on a really comfortable recliner chair, surreptitiously sipping from a flask in her hand. "I was fine with just clearing a bedroom each, and hiring someone else to do the rest tomorrow."

"I thought the two of you were broke?" Sakura asked.

"There's a sort of trust fund attached to the house," Shizune told her. "Lady Tsunade can't touch it for anything except maintaining the household. Cleaning, bills, even groceries, you know?"

"I suppose that explains why this place was always so well stocked," Sakura mused. "Even when shishou was dead broke."

Tsunade was quiet, a frown on her face as she stared at some obscure spot. Finally she stood and said, "I'm headed to bed. You two don't stay up too long, we've got a lot of records to go through tomorrow."

Once she'd practically stomped off to bed, Shizune sighed sadly. "She's really not dealing well with Orochimaru's betrayal," she said.

"I'd heard they were closer than she was with Jiraiya," Sakura said. "At least, before now."

"You said you'd met Orochimaru," Shizune remembered. "How? When?"

"It was mostly related to my team mates and our missions," Sakura told her. "Then afterwards…. Actually, I'm not sure I should mention that bit."

The bit she was thinking of was the war.

"Alright," Shizune said, standing. "I think I'll head off to bed too. See you in the morning, Sakura."

Once she was alone, Sakura fell into memories, thinking of her friends and wondering if she was ever going to see them again. What if they couldn't find Futoshi? What if Shizune was right, and he didn't have the time travel jutsu yet? Being stuck in the past wasn't something she wanted, no matter how unique an experience it was.

Eventually she decided to head off to bed as well, hoping that tomorrow they could find some answers, though she had an ominous feeling that they were going to come up empty handed.

 **Kakashi will turn up next chapter. ;)**

 **Review please!**


	3. Chapter 3

**Hiya! New chapter! :) So, someone asked how old Sakura is. She's nineteen. :) And since she's fourteen years in the past, so's Kakashi.**

 **Disclaimer that I don't own, and enjoy!**

 **Chapter Three**

Sarutobi Hiruzen sat at his desk, contemplating things. He did this every now and then, especially at the start of his day, mostly to centre his thoughts and prepare him for the work ahead. Today, his thoughts were on his former student, and the girl she'd brought back to the village with her.

Time travel. It was such a ludicrous subject, but it was true, Orochimaru _had_ indeed looked into the subject. After his escape after he'd been confronted, everything they'd confiscated had been thoroughly sorted through, and a rather in depth exposition on the subject had been found, and automatically classified. And yet, it seemed that, with all his research, and his hunger for power, Orochimaru had deemed time travel too _dangerous_ and unpredictable to meddle with.

Ironic, given the circumstances.

Today Tsunade, Shizune, and the Sakura girl would be headed into the archives to look for information on this Ikari Futoshi that had sent Sakura backwards. And he had to assign an ANBU to watch them, for protocol's sake. Tsunade had been right to call it a boring job, but it needed to be done. In fact, the operative he had in mind for it could do with a dose of boredom, since he'd been run ragged with missions lately, on top of the fact that he'd been involved in the attempt to chase Orochimaru down.

As if he was somehow conjured by the Hokage's thoughts, an ANBU wearing a dog mask 'poofed' into the room. "You sent for me, Hokage-sama?"

"Yes," Hiruzen said. "I've a mission for you, a standard monitoring mission. There's a newcomer in town, arrived with Tsunade. I don't doubt her intentions," _for the most part_ "but it's protocol. They'll be headed into the archives today, and I'm assigning you to be the one to watch her."

He could almost feel the agitation coming off his shinobi at the nature of the mission, but it needed to be done. "I know that this isn't the kind of mission that you were hoping for," the Hokage speculated. "But it's a mission nonetheless, and I expect it to be carried out to the best of your ability."

"Yes, Hokage-sama," Hound, for that was his official ANBU designation, said, no hint of what he was feeling in his words.

"Very well," Hiruzen said. "You'll meet them at Tsunade's family home, do you know where that is?"

Hound nodded, and his superior continued, "You really only need to watch her while they're in the archives. Once they leave the archive for the day, you may do so as well. Report back here straight away for a briefing, then back again in the morning at the same time before heading back out to meet them. This will continue until they have found what they are looking for. Are the orders clear?"

Hound nodded. "Yes, Hokage-sama," he said. "Do you want me to head over there right now?"

Hiruzen nodded. "Oh, and Kakashi," he said, using the ANBU's _actual_ name to accentuate seriousness. "Anything they discuss, not one single word of it is to be repeated by you unless it's directly to me, understood? Not even the Elders or your ANBU superiors. This is a direct order, do you understand?"

Hound nodded, then disappeared in a puff of smoke. Hiruzen sighed and leaned back in his chair, puffing on his pipe, and hoping that this mission would help Kakashi settle a bit after everything that had happened with Orochimaru and Danzou.

OoOoO

Hatake Kakashi wasn't someone who really complained about the missions he got. If he was, perhaps he would have voiced his annoyance at being put on a basic monitoring mission. It was true, he'd been out on a lot of heavy and dangerous missions of late, the Hokage probably thought he needed a reprieve from the danger and trauma, and he probably did. But to be babysitting some outsider to the village, for all that she'd come here with a Legendary Sannin…

Repressing a sigh, he knocked on the door of Tsunade-hime's family home. Only moments later, and the girl who opened it was someone he recognised as Kato Shizune, who'd taken off with Tsunade-hime when she'd left the village.

"Oh!" she said, then turned and called, "Tsunade-sama, the ANBU is here! Are you and Sakura ready yet?"

Turning back to Kakashi, she smiled sweetly and apologised, "I'm sorry, but Tsunade-sama isn't really much of a morning person. Sakura and I tried to get her to drink some coffee, but she insisted on saké instead."

"Come on, shishou!" a voice was cajoling, and Kakashi looked over to see the Legendary Sannin being _dragged_ along by a girl with pink hair. "We're going to the archives, remember?"

"Stop pulling on me, Sakura!" Tsunade complained, and Kakashi swore he was sweat dropping under his ANBU mask. "I'm coming aren't I?"

"Heh, sorry to keep you wai…" the pink girl's words trailed off as she spotted him and she gaped, _gaped,_ at him.

"Sakura, what's wrong?" Shizune asked, and Tsunade-hime also looked concerned.

"Uh… N-nothing," Sakura said, then laughed sheepishly. "Let's get going then, shall we?"

She was lying, Kakashi knew, but he was in no position to question her about it. So instead he performed his duty to a tee, watching her carefully to make sure she was no threat to the village. When they arrived at the archives, Shizune showed the chuunin guard their pass, and they were allowed through.

Kakashi kept his distance, just watching. He couldn't help notice the occasional glances the girl Sakura sent his way. Why? What was so interesting about him? He was just an ANBU to her, there was no reason for her to be reacting this way. His eyes narrowed behind his mask as he watched her pour over a scroll. She seemed to be really intent on whatever she was reading.

"This is _sooo dull_!" Tsunade-hime suddenly exclaimed, causing Sakura and Shizune to jump slightly. "I'm so bored, I need a break! What time is it? Is it lunch yet?"

"It's only just past ten, Tsunade-sama," Shizune said with a frown. "You know, this whole thing was _your_ idea."

"I know, I know," Tsunade-hime waved away. "It's just that it's _exactly_ like paperwork, and I _hate_ paperwork!"

"Don't I know it," Sakura muttered, then blushed when she realised that everyone had heard her. "Ah, sorry about that!"

"Argh! Don't tell me I'm gonna be stuck with paperwork in the future!" Tsunade-hime moaned, then sat up, expression confused and serious. "Wait, why would I have to do a lot of paperwork?"

"Could we just leave it alone?" Sakura asked.

"We're not exactly _alone_ right now," Shizune added, flicking a nervous gaze to Kakashi.

"Whatever," Tsunade-hime dismissed. "I'm sure Sarutobi-sensei told this guy not to repeat anything we say, right, dog face?"

Kakashi didn't respond, not even when Tsunade-hime scoffed at him and said, "See?" to her companions.

"Regardless," Shizune said. "Perhaps we shouldn't be so liberal with our words."

"No, Tsunade-shishou is right," Sakura sighed. "But it doesn't matter, can we get back to this? We still need to find something on Ikari Futoshi."

"Alright," Tsunade-hime grumbled. "Let's get back into it then."

And then it was silent in the archives for a little bit.

OoOoO

Sakura had been shocked to see him. She knew that her old sensei had been in ANBU, of course, she'd even seen his mask that one time Team Seven had imposed on him after a particularly brutal mission. Not that the mask did much to hide his identity, since he already wore one around in public all the time. And of course, his chakra was familiar to her, despite the fourteen year difference.

Still, the sight of Kakashi at the door had surprised Sakura. Even though she knew she was in the past, even though she'd already come in contact with the Sandaime as proof of that, seeing her old sensei had somehow cemented the fact that she was really here.

And made her all the more determined that she wanted to go home.

Searching the archives was proving to be slower than anticipated. The cataloguing system wasn't nearly as sophisticated as in her own time, not until Tsunade-shishou had taken over as Hokage, and Sakura'd had even more reason to go into them. So finding everything in this out-dated, to her, system, was incredibly frustrating and annoying. Things weren't where she remembered them to be! Really, an overhaul of the entire archive couldn't happen soon enough!

Sighing, Sakura stood and made her way over to the next set of archives. She was aware of how Kakashi's eyes followed her. It made her feel nervous, even though he was just doing his job. What must he be thinking, after shishou had mentioned the future? Glancing over at him, she couldn't get a read off him, not even from his body language. It was to be expected, she supposed, he was on a 'mission', after all.

Time passed, and there was still _nothing_. Sakura had the feeling that this was going to end up a dead end, and that frustrated her to no end. They _had_ to find Ikari Futoshi, she needed to get home! If she ended up being stuck here… Living through everything again was _not_ something that she wanted! Especially not the Fourth Shinobi War…

Finally, it was time for lunch. "Now we can get something to eat," Shizune said.

"Just go find something and bring it back," Tsunade said with a dismissive wave.

"I thought you were bored out of your brain and hated how similar it was to paperwork?" Sakura asked.

"Oh, right, I am and I do," Tsunade clicked, putting down what she was reading. "Fine, let's go out to eat. ANBU, you won't be necessary once we leave here, but give it about an hour, then come back so Sakura can get back in, alright?"

Kakashi nodded, and they all filed out, and he immediately left. Sakura sighed, wondering who else she was going to see that she knew. That question was answered soon enough when…

"Shizune!"

They turned to see Kurenai coming towards them, with Asuma and Genma in tow. Shizune smiled brightly.

"Kurenai! It's good to see you," she said, hugging the other woman.

"When did you get back in the village?" Asuma asked.

"Yesterday," Shizune said, and Sakura noted that Genma was eyeing Tsunade's official apprentice up and down appreciatively. "We were just headed out to lunch."

It was then that they spotted Tsunade and Sakura.

"Tsunade-hime, it's an honour," Asuma said, bowing lightly, and Kurenai followed suit.

"Hi, I'm Kurenai," the kunoichi in question introduced herself to Sakura. "This is Asuma and Genma."

"I'm Sakura," the pinkette responded.

"Are you travelling with Tsunade-hime as well?" the genjutsu user asked.

"Yes," Tsunade said before either Sakura or Shizune could respond. "I've been teaching her everything I know, she has quite a knack for it."

"Would you all like to join us for lunch?" Genma spoke up. "We were headed for a local izakaya. They have a really good fried chicken and sashimi menu."

"Er, no thanks," Sakura declined.

"What? Why not?" Tsunade asked.

"Because we have things to discuss," Shizune put in her bit.

"…Right."

"Oh well, maybe next time, then?" Kurenai asked, then she and the two men with her took their leave.

"Oh, stop pouting," Shizune said to Tsunade, knowing exactly why her mentor was pouting. "You don't need to have saké with _every_ meal, you know."

Lunch ended up being at a tempura stall, where Sakura and Tsunade opted for the seafood version, and Shizune got the vegetarian one. "So," Tsunade said once they were seated. "How's everyone's searching going?"

"Not very well," Sakura said, and Shizune nodded in agreement. "The filing system is different from what I'm used to, I'd forgotten that it got a massive overhaul when I was thirteen, so things aren't where I expected them to be."

"It is a bit of a mess," Shizune mused. "Maybe we could make a suggestion to Hokage-sama?"

"No," Tsunade said. "Leave it. Sakura said it gets overhauled when she's thirteen years old, so leave it that way. We'll just have to make do. In the mean time… Was I the only one that noticed the guy chewing the senbon was checking Shizune out?"

Sakura grinned as Shizune went red. "That's Genma," she said. "I think you'd like him, Shizune."

"I don't.. Would you… Uh! Just leave it be!" Shizune sputtered, and her two companions laughed.

Once they were done with lunch, they headed back in the direction of the archives, only to run into Kurenai again. She was alone this time, and invited Shizune out for drinks that night. "You too, Sakura," she invited. "And Tsunade-hime, if you'd like. We'll be at the shinobi bar on the sixth street from the Hokage tower."

"We'll think about it," Shizune said.

Kakashi was already waiting for them at the archives, and the rest of the afternoon was spent silently for the most part. Once Tsunade decided they'd done enough, they left, with Sakura's ANBU watchdog leaving almost immediately once again.

OoOoO

"Was that everything?"

Kakashi hesitated. Ever since the mention of the future, he'd been quite curious as to what it meant. He really wanted to ask the Hokage about it, but it was too deeply drilled into him not to ask questions. So he shook his head and the Sandaime dismissed him.

Headed straight back to his apartment, Kakashi was quite distracted with his thoughts. After changing out of his ANBU uniform, he decided to wander the village streets. It was because of this that Gai found him, aimlessly wandering in the market place.

"Kakashi, my Eternal Rival!" the green clad shinobi greeted him enthusiastically. "I've been looking for you everywhere, my friend."

"Whatever your challenge is, I'm not in the mood," Kakashi said.

"It's not about that," Gai said. "Although your lack of youthful vigour is really tempting me to… Eyarh! The point is, Kurenai, Asuma, and I are meeting up with some others at the shinobi bar tonight. I was dispatched to invite you to join us, my Rival!"

Another thumbs up, and Kakashi sighed. "I'll think about it," he said, and walked off.

"Alright, I'll see you there!" Gai called, and then leapt off onto the rooftops.

Maybe he _should_ go, Kakashi mused. He could certainly use a drink. Just as long as he didn't overindulge, so he would be fit for his mission in the morning.

Even if it was as boring as hell.

 **So, who's up for some drinks at the shinobi bar?**

 _ **Review please!**_

 _Izakaya: Essentially, they're Japanese pubs. Or bars, taverns, whatever you might call them._

 _Sashimi: A Japanese delicacy consisting of very fresh raw meat or fish sliced into thin pieces._

 _Tempura: Battered vegetables or seafood._

 _Apparently, Japanese streets don't have names._ :(


End file.
